


calculation in chaos

by hes_made_of_gold (how_fickle_my_heart)



Category: Young Justice (Cartoon)
Genre: Gen, M/M, Pre-Slash, post Invasion
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-08-14
Updated: 2014-08-14
Packaged: 2018-02-13 04:23:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,780
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2136885
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/how_fickle_my_heart/pseuds/hes_made_of_gold
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>I wished to speak with you, Impulse, regarding my termination. </em>
</p><p> </p><p>  <em>You have saved this host from manipulation before, where it would have been easier to kill Jaime Reyes.</em></p><p> </p><p>Khaji Da speaks to Bart about a failsafe. It goes about as well as a conversation between an alien AI and a time traveller can.</p>
            </blockquote>





	calculation in chaos

_I wish to communicate with the Impulse, Jaime Reyes._

Khaji Da's cool voice broke through the clang and clatter of the Ghostbusters movie playing onscreen. In his surprise Jaime missed Dan Aykroyd getting covered in green slime. Beside him Bart cheered, hand buried to the wrist in a popcorn bowl.

_Wait, what?_

_Scans indicate a startle reflex across the brainsteam in response to the statement. Does the request unsettle you?  
_

_Startle - okay, just call it surprise in the future. And stop with the biology lectures. I'm surprised because you've never wanted to talk to anyone. Mostly you just hang around acting like a glorified preschooler thinking up new insults and telling me to kill people. Okay, maybe not a preschooler. But still.  
_

_I have information that the Impulse will benefit from. It will require capitulating your higher functions for my usage for a few minutes.  
_

_Wow whoa what wait! You want to go on mode?! Why would you even think -_

_Relax your heartbeat, Jaime Reyes. I have no intention of harming the Impulse or using my control for nefarious purposes._

_That does not - how am I supposed to trust you? I don't even know what this is about.  
_

Jaime could feel a sort of emanating blankness from the space in his head where he imagined the scarab resided. It took a moment to register the emotion as disappointment, coupled with discomfort and weariness. After their agreement, Jaime had noticed that occasionally it was possible for him to hazard more than a guess at the inner workings of Khaji Da's mind. It seemed as if their link was beginning to work both ways, allowing him brief insights into the scarab's feelings and processes.

A flash of frustration burst forth and Jaime had the sudden thought that whatever the information was, it was pretty imperative for the scarab to share. At least, that was how Khaji Da felt (side note: could AI's feel?) on the subject.

_I have not attempted to take control, Jaime Reyes. I am asking permission to.  
_

_Forcefully,_ Jaime muttered under his breath. _I'm not...comfortable with letting you take over._ He paused, recognising that however strange, this seemed significant for the scarab. And despite many (many many) other character faults, frivolous was not a description fitting Khaji Da's actions. _I could rely the information?_

_Inadequate. I wish to confer with the Impulse without your input._

Well, that certainly cleared up all of Jaime's hesitation. _I don't like you taking control. I still don't trust you, especially around -_

'Jaime?' Bart questioned, leaning over to him and waving a hand (what Jaime supposed to be a hand, considering it was moving at no more than a flesh coloured blur) in front of his face. 'You crash?'

Jaime coughed, reaching for a handful of popcorn to give his awkward limbs something to do. 'Yeh. Fine. Just got a bit distracted.' He quickly focused in on the screen, feeling Bart frowning at him.

'You called Ghostbusters an iconic comedy in which evil manifests in a 100-ft giant marshmallow and must be conquered by nerds using nuclear accelerators and vacuum cleaners. And then said that two people also get turned into gigantic dogs and a god shows up in a fridge. What's wrong?' Ignoring the screams coming from the TV, Bart turned a serious expression on his face. He then undermined the tone of the question by throwing popcorn at Jaime's head.

'Khaji Da wants to talk to you,' Jaime said after a moment, dropping his gaze to the couch and shuffling pointlessly around. 'Personally. Which is weird, because usually he just drones on about ow annoying everyone is and how ineffective our actions are.' 

'Personally. You mean - oh,' Bart looked surprised, then something unreadable and solid settled onto his features as he realised what was meant. One of his hands wandered up to tug at the tufts of hair at the nape of his neck, fingers twining around it in a painful looking action. 'You don't have to let him. I mean, it's your mind - ' and whatever comments he made was lost to the sound of the scarab, louder than before, echoing through Jaime's head.

 _It is important. Jaime Reyes, I ask very little._ Khaji Da's voice leaked frustration into Jamie's mind. _It is for your safety. And that of the Impulse's. My information may well be crucial to subverting a future disaster. I wish to inform him of the mechanisms required to shut down my computational devices in the event of a malfunction.  
_

_I - what?_ Jaime paused, raising both eyebrows unconsciously. Bart continued to stare at him, fingers still curling distractingly, but Jaime zoned him out. He could almost feel Khaji Da's sigh of impatient.

 _There is a possibility of -_ and at this point words melted out, pictures and intentions and thoughts taking their place as Khaji Da changed his medium. Language, often too clunky and slow for combat situations, yielded to a much more efficient method of communication.

Rooting his fingers around aimlessly in the popcorn bowl, somewhat unsettled by Bart's constant watchfulness of his face, Jaime considered the scarab's points. All valid, all utterly terrifying, and all avoidable by ceding control for a few moments. It still made his skin twitch, just like it had that night when Nightwing and Wonder Girl tried to bring him into the fold initially. And just like that night, it was eventually unavoidable. Jaime glanced up, meeting Bart's unusually still eyes.

'Are you okay with speaking to him?' He asked the speedster. Jaime didn't want Bart to feel uncomfortable; he knew vaguely about the future he came from, about what the Blue Beetle suit, on mode, represented to him. The instruction could be given to someone else, however much the idea of that caused a sourness to creep up his throat. Bart's brow furrowed and he fidgeted at superspeed, glancing around rapidly. 'You don't have to, at all.'

'Is it important?' At Jaime's nod Bart seemed to steel himself, drawing up out of the slouch couches automatically induce in ones posture. 'Okay then. If you're okay with it.'

 _Okay is so far from how I'm feeling, Jaime_  thought uneasily. _But the alternative is worse._

 _Apocalyptic,_ Khaji Da inserted, sounding as close to cheerful as a semi organic Reach technology could. It was the last thing Jaime was aware of before a wash of greyscale fell over him, knocking his conscious aside.

 

\---

 

'You're Khaji Da,' Bart stated, staring at Jaime. If it came out as more of a meek question, then that was the fault of his voice box alone. Jaime sat straighter, now, blank face turned to the screen so that Bart saw him in profile. It was Jaime and yet it was different. He held himself more carefully, rather than in Jaime's sprawl. His hands were clenched tight on his knees, as if the scarab was as uncomfortable as Bart about the whole affair. Jaime's eyes were closed, his feet firmly placed upon the ground. This was Not-Jaime, and given the scarab's abilities at impersonations Bart couldn't help but consider that it was modifying Not-Jaime's physical behaviour to allow Bart to separate the identities in his head.

'I am.' Jaime's voice sounded deeper, somehow, filled with a resonance that reminded Bart suddenly that the scarab was ancient. 'I wished to speak with you, Impulse, regarding my termination.'

'Your termination?' Bart hoped his voice didn't usually go that high. Trepidation stalked up his throat and he leaned forwards. His fingers were buzzing slightly in mild panic. 'Are you degenerating?' Already his mind was turning over facts: beetles were Reach technology, and despite the lack of precedent for technical issues it was likely that the scarab had been damaged in the battle with Black Beetle. Green Beetle's scarab had been destroyed by the same incident. It was entirely possible that the damage may have resulted in issues with Khaji Da's wiring which had only recently manifested. Or perhaps it had been unwilling to admit imperfections around once-enemies. Maybe it was programmed to only ask for help in dire circumstance. There were many explanation for the time gap between the battle and now.

'No, Bart Allen. You misunderstand. I am unharmed, and the Reach technology continues to function within acceptable parameters. I wish to inform you of the steps necessary to terminate my ability to manipulate the Reach technology.' The voice was soft and clear, and Bart was very glad that the scarab had closed Jaime's eyes.

'You want to tell me how to shut you down.' Bart felt sick, suddenly, and recalled Captain Atom's attempts to remove the scarab from Jaime's spine.

'Yes. There is a way to do so without endangering the host.' Images of Jaime's face, too pale for his skin tone as he lay morphed into Bart's mind. The number of images in the catalogue that fit that description was worryingly large.

'But why?' _Why me, why tell anyone at all, why now._

'Your objective was to halt the Reach's domination of the planet, partly by stopping my ability to connect with it's hive mind. You succeeded the mission parameters, but the margin of error for failure was unacceptably high. You allowed Jaime Reyes and myself to be subdued by the Reach and was captured yourself. The plan to return my status to off mode was badly enacted and relied highly on chance, particularly your move in quelling Black Beetle and Blue Beetle.'

Jamie was held stiff, sitting a scant few feet and a mind controlling alien parasite away. Khaji Da's voice was similarly carefully controlled, as if hiding anger. Could AIs even experience anger?

'That's just a list of my failures,' Bart pointed out, voice waving uncomfortably. It hurt in way he didn't want to analyse to hear such things from Jaime. Not-Jaime. Hardly untruths, but inaccurate depictions of his actions. 'But I did help stop the Reach in the end. I saved Jaime from them. It worked!'

'Precisely. You have saved the host and this scarab from the Reach before. Despite the removal of the Reach from this planet, it is likely that enclaves of its organisation continue to exist. Similarly, there may be other technologies or magics which can take advantage of my abilities. Thus, it would be prudent to divulge sensitive information regarding the termination of the Reach technology affecting this host should it fall into enemy hands.'

'Ummm,' Bart replied eloquently. His head felt home to thousands of tiny, buzzing insects. 'That....makes sense. But, shouldn't you be telling this to Batman? Or....anyone else? Not me.'

'The Batman would choose less subtle techniques for termination. The host may not survive such attempts. You have saved this host from such manipulation before where it would have been easier to kill Jaime Reyes. Thus, you are a more trusted authority.'

Bart blinked. _What._ Khaji Da....did not just say that. Nope. He was having an aneurysm. He ran too fast and ended up in an alternate dimension and had only just noticed. There was no way the alien scarab trusted Bart, _Bart Allen_ whose code name is _Impulse_ (was, and that hurthurthurt so he pushed it aside back into the dark cavern in his chest specifically chiseled out to hold down pain) with information that could endanger Khaji Da's existence.

(Which brought another observation: Khaji Da chose him because he deemed Batman unfit (yep, still blowing Bart's mind) to save Jaime, and he was willingly handing out information about how to shut himself down so that Jaime won't have to get destroyed too, and Bart wasn't sure if this was Kahji Da being practical, manipulative or caring about Jaime's life.)

During Bart's mini-freak-out-of-things-he-never-thought-would-happen (with all the practice he's had, he's getting good at dealing with them) he managed to not notice Jaime's sudden shirtlessness. Until he did, of course. Which sent him into another bout of _Not-Happening_.

'Ahhh,' he began hesitantly, not entirely sure where to look. 'What are you doing?'

Without being consciously aware of it, Bart trailed his eyes over the skin on offer. Jaime had a caramel hue, subtle scars from a time before the scarab and a really, really nice physique. People in Bart's time didn't have the protein available to grow real muscles: they were all scrawny, wiry things adapted for survival, not push-ups. He was halfway through cataloging smooth abs when it occurred to Bart that he was ogling. And not at super speed as he usually did (he's got eidetic memory and a teamful of really hot people, okay?).

Once he'd pulled his gaze back up, the look on Not-Jaime's face was annoyingly smug. Bart could almost _feel_ Khaji Da's scan of his vitals and the subsequent conclusions.

'You will require access to the hardware in order to terminate systems,' Khaji Da explained, turning Jaime's back to Bart and shuffling slightly. Bart edged forwards, resisting the urge to map the edges of the scarab resting on Jaime's skin with his fingers. It lay nestled into the space between the other boy's shoulder blades, a surprisingly small protrusion.

Objectively, the scarab was beautiful. At this distance Bart could see the fine detail on its surface, true to a beetle design but larger and bluer than life. Fine runes were carved onto the surface, mapping sectors onto the beetle's body. Bart reached out, giving in to impulse.

One of Not-Jaime's hands came up behind him to grasp Bart's by the wrist, as if to stop him from touching the surface. He panicked for a moment, recognising the sudden absurdity of his aborted gesture, before realising that the hand was actually dragging him closer. Jamie's tanned fingers wrapped around his right index, bringing it up to rest against the right wing of the beetle. Bart had to forcefully remind himself that this was Khaji Da, not Jaime.

'There is a plate on the underside of the wings. The Reach designed it as an access port in case of malfunctions.' Not-Jaime's hand manoeuvred Bart's index to reach under, raising the wing to allow Bart to see. There was a plate of discoloured blue on the underside of the wing, as wide as three of Bart's fingers and spanning almost the entirety of the bottom half of the wing. When pressure was applied to the patch it slide away, revealing a very shallow cavity.

'This is what the Green Beetle used to put you on mode,' Bart hazarded, licking suddenly dry lips. He could make out a mess of wires and blinking lights, presumably somehow organised together. 'I can only access it when the wings are lifted,' he added. 'How could anyone get to it when Jaime is in the suit on mode?' It was a tricky position to get to even with Khaji Da perfectly accommodating.

'The Reach miscalculated,' the scarab commented, a hint of derision creeping into Not-Jaime's voice. 'The port is exposed when the suit is in flight. Once the suit lands, there is a 1.35 second window of opportunity to access the panel before the wings fold away automatically. Alternatively, you may attempt this manoeuvre whilst the suit is in flight, although I would not recommend it.'

'Okay,' Bart nodded, swallowing as he looked down at the wires. 'What do I do now? Hypothetically.'

'Reach technology is more advanced than Earth bombs. It is designed to withstand and eliminate tampering. Should you divert from the instructions I am about to divulge the suit's automatic response will be to terminate you and change the override sequence.'

'Only one chance,' Bart whispered. His other hand had come to rest on the back of Jaime's ribs, quite accidentally, but he couldn't bring himself to move it. Somewhere in the back of his mind Bart was thinking about his destroyed future, how vital this information would have been then. How he might've killed for it and how easily he would have killed that Blue Beetle had he known this weakness.

'The system requires a thorough knowledge of Reach technology to manipulate accurately. However, since your objective is only the cause enough damage to require a full shutdown the sequence will be simplified. You will need to sever the batch of wires attached to the left outermost panel available to you.'

Bart could see the cluster that the scarab was indicating and hovered his finger over the section, thankful for his eidetic memory. Even without it he doubted ever being able to forget this.

'What will that do?' he asked, not quite able to swallow down the curiosity.

'These wires act similarly to the human nervous system. Their severance will hinder the range of motion of the suit. A knife would be most preferable but pulling out the connection ports will yield the same results. At this point the suit will note the interference and may attempt to resist.'

The scarab's sentences marched out in a harsh staccato rhythm. Khaji Da continued to explain a number of other steps which Bart would have to complete before the suit and scarab would be terminated. It was oddly akin to building the time machine: Bart had only vague ideas about how and when it could be used, and the reality actually building it would bring about, but the science came naturally to him. Still, there was one effect Bart felt some trepidation towards.

'What happens to you when the suit gets terminated?'

Not-Jaime held perfectly still, as he had through the entire surreal experience, but now the muscles in his shoulders seemed to tense as Khaji Da contemplated the answer.

'The Reach did not conduct many experiments on the topic, but my own calculations have ensured that Jaime will not come to any permanent harm should the sequence be enacted,' Khaji Da announced slowly as if uncomfortable with the subject.

'But what happens to you?' Bart pressed. 'You _are_ the suit.'

The seconds dragged by, each its own tense eon to Bart.

'I lack the information to answer your question. The Reach did not believe in salvaging parts. It is likely to conclude that the termination may result in some, if not all, of my systems being permanently disabled.' Not-Jaime's voice sounded colder.

Bart opened his mouth once, twice, before deciding that he really didn't know how to respond to that. Instead, he diverted to an older topic. 'I still can't believe you want me to know this.' The heartbeat that had calmed in the presence of science picked up again as Bart thought through the implications of what Khaji Da had shown him. 'Are you sure you don't want to tell .... Idon'tknow,theFlashorSupermanorsomeonewhosegoodatthisandresponsibleandcanhandleit?'

Bart was unprepared for Not-Jaime to twist around to face him, eyes suddenly open and more clinical than he ever remembered them (from this timeline.) The suit was off but there was something innately _Reach_ about his expression. A little (large) part of him wanted to run, and another reminded him that it would be pointless with an inhibitor collar on, where exactly was he going to go anyway, there was nothing, the Reach had taken everything and everyone and there was only him and Blue Beetle thundering from above

...and there wasn't. There _wasn't_. Not in this timeline. He _fixed_ this timeline. And now he just had to fix his breathing and hope Khaji Da didn't comment on it.

'As I have explained, Bart Allen, you have succeeded in freeing the host from the Reach before. Moreover, you have consistently displayed faith in Jaime, despite the naivety in that decision. I have observed your actions and I find them satisfactory. I have provided you with information in order to replicate that outcome once again.'

Scarabs made with artificial intelligence should not be able to give off an air of smugness mixed with deadly expectation, Bart decided.

He felt oddly detached, then, like he was witnessing this in a movie. Nothing about the last ten minutes seemed very real to him, despite the crescendo of panic that had swept him away moments before. Now that it had subsided Bart was left strangely numb. The state wouldn't last, he knew, he sped through emotions just like he sped through thoughts and countries. Already the feeling in his fingertips was returning, warm and frictionless and _weird_ until he remembered that his hands were all over Jaime. Well, not all over. Not as over as he'd like, in any case.

'Right, ahh,' he broke off when he felt Jaime shake under his touch. The shoulders before him rolled and skin stretched tighter over the ribs his hand laid on as Jaime twisted to face him. His friend's face was warmer, etched with hesitation. Jaime, then, it was only Jaime behind those eyes. The scarab couldn't fake this.

'Hi,' Jaime offered, biting at his lip. Bart dragged his eyes away from the image.

'Oh. Hey.' Bart uncurled his fingers and put them back in his lap, suddenly self conscious. 'So...that was what the scarab wanted to tell me,' he said pointlessly.

Jaime nodded. 'Yeh.'

Bart could feel the speed building up in him, accompanying the anxiety as it made a lunge for his throat. 'Do you, do you mind?' he asked softly. Jamie blinked at him, confusion shaping his eyebrows upwards.

'That you know, or that he told you?' Jaime cut him off before Bart could answer. 'No. No to both. I'm glad that he did. I don't want to get used by anyone ever again.'

And _oh_ , Bart suddenly felt very bad for not considering that before. It was obvious that Jaime would do anything to avoid a repeat. Bart often missed the obvious in his hunt for the details.

'And,' Jaime continued, swallowing quickly before looking up to hold Bart's gaze, 'I'm glad he told you, not someone else.'

Bart couldn't quite explain the emotions that stirred up. Relief was definitely in there, sighing happily that Jaime didn't hate him, didn't feel uncomfortable now that Bart had this knowledge, but anxiety was elbowing her way into the mix as well. A cousin of anxiety, Bart decided after a moment of reflection, something milder that sent sparks through his muscles and made him simultaneously want to run away and bury himself in Jamie's skin. It was dangerous, whatever it was.

'I think we'll have to rewind the movie,' Bart said, reaching for and passing Jaime's shirt whilst backing away to give some space between them. He stomped the feelings building up in him ruthlessly.

Normality descended. They rewound the DVD, ate the rest of the popcorn and talked through the film. Something new shivered up Bart's spine whenever Jaime leaned in close though, catching his breath in a hitch.

They didn't speak about it again.

**Author's Note:**

> Hello lovely readers! I've had this YJ fic crawling about my brain for a while, along with a few ideas about a sequel, so if you want to see more let me know :) 
> 
> My tumblr is cherryflamed coincidently.


End file.
